Aon PLC, Oxfam in Sri Lanka, and tech startup Etherisc GmbH are collaborating to use distributed ledger technology to deliver microinsurance to smallholder paddy field farmers in Sri Lanka who are at risk of losing their crops due to extreme weather, Aon said Monday.
Sanasa Insurance, partner of Colombo-based Oxfam in Sri Lanka, will provide local expertise, networks and operational execution, Aon said in a statement.
The blockchain automation provided by Munich-based Etherisc will streamline the claims process and reduce administrative costs, the statement said.
“Allowing farmers to access the blockchain platform is an important milestone that is bringing an effective and affordable risk transfer mechanism to a large portion of the Sri Lanka economy,” Bojan Kolundzija, the country director of Oxfam in Sri Lanka, said in the statement.
RIO DE JANEIRO—Efforts by insurers to develop microinsurance products for developing countries hold great potential, but insurers need to take a collaborative approach for the efforts to succeed, Brian Duperreault, president and CEO of Marsh & McLennan Cos. Inc., said Tuesday.